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Maximum limit of exotic species in the recovery of Legal Reserve is 50% of the total area to be restored

Reviewed on 2026-10-03 · next review 2027-04-03

Data

Data consulted on 10/03/2026.

Basis

• Law n.º 12.651/2012 (Forest Code) (Planalto, in Portuguese): art. 66, § 3º, establishes that the recovery of Legal Reserve can be done with intercropping of native and exotic species, provided that the exotic species do not exceed 50% of the total area to be restored.

How it applies

The 50% limit applies only to the recovery of Legal Reserve in rural properties that had an area below the legal percentage as of July 22, 2008 (art. 66, caput). Planting must be done in an agroforestry system, combining exotic species with native species of regional occurrence. The rule does not apply to Permanent Protection Areas (PPA) or properties that do not fall under the regularization regime of art. 66.

Limits

• Applicable only to the recovery of Legal Reserve in properties with consolidated area below the legal percentage in 2008 (art. 66).
• Does not apply to PPA areas, environmental compensation, or natural regeneration.
• Exceptions: Priority areas for biodiversity or water resource conservation (art. 12, § 1º) and ecological corridors do not allow the use of exotic species, even if below 50%.
• Transition regime: Properties with an area greater than 4 fiscal modules or located outside the Legal Amazon have different Legal Reserve percentages (art. 12), but the 50% limit for exotics follows the same criteria as § 3º of art. 66.
• Updates: Verify possible changes in Law n.º 12.651/2012 or Sisnama (National Environmental System) regulations after 2012, especially regarding ecological-economic zoning (ZEEs) or new interpretations of the CAR (Rural Environmental Registry).

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